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Updated:November 2, 2004

Document ID:FN26454

Revised July 3, 2008

October 15, 2003

NOTICE:

THIS FIELD NOTICE HAS BEEN EXPIRED AND IS NO LONGER MAINTAINED OR UPDATED BY CISCO.

THIS FIELD NOTICE IS PROVIDED ON AN "AS IS" BASIS AND DOES NOT IMPLY ANY KIND OF GUARANTEE, WARRANTY OR SUPPORT. USE OF THE INFORMATION ON THIS FIELD NOTICE OR MATERIALS LINKED FROM THIS FIELD NOTICE IS AT YOUR OWN RISK. CISCO RESERVES THE RIGHT TO CHANGE OR UPDATE THIS FIELD NOTICE AT ANY TIME.

Serial Numbers

Problem Description

Some Catalyst WS-C6509 series chassis manufactured between February and June 2003 have handles which can break off when they are used to lift or move the chassis.

Problem Symptoms

Caution: While the handles may appear to be firmly fastened to the chassis, they can potentially break off while the chassis is lifted or carried. If you need to move a suspect chassis, use the procedure described in the How To Identify Hardware Levels section of this document.

Workaround/Solution

Note: As of November 1, 2003, Return Material Authorization (RMA) Service Depot stock has been screened and purged of units that contain this defect. At this time, all WS-C6509 chassis shipped from RMA Service Depots must be free of this defect.

There is no known work around for this issue. If you have a chassis in the affected serial number range, replace that chassis immediately with the standard RMA process. Standard lead-times apply. If you absolutely must move or lift a suspect chassis, follow the lifting procedure referenced in the How To Identify Hardware Levels section of this document.

Additionally, Cisco provides customers who have purchased chassis within the aforementioned serial number range with a set of warning stickers which you should use to mark chassis which cannot be immediately decommissioned and returned to Cisco for replacement. If you are in possession of affected chassis which have already been deployed, and cannot be removed from service, affix these stickers to those chassis so they may be easily identified in the future.

On November 3, 2003, Cisco proactively distributed warning stickers by mail to customers who had been shipped a chassis within the affected serial number range. Each of the identified customers should have received one set of stickers for each affected chassis they were shipped. If you have not been provided a set of stickers and believe you have a WS-C6509 chassis which may be at risk, send an email to FN26454-Stickers@cisco.com to request a replacement set of warning stickers for your chassis. In your email, make sure to include this information:

Customers who purchased an affected chassis directly from Cisco are shipped a set of stickers automatically, with no customer action required. Customers who have purchased a suspect chassis from a third-party vendor or channel partner must contact Cisco by email at FN26454-Stickers@cisco.com, in order to receive a set of stickers.

In order to identify if a given chassis is eligible for replacement, the serial number of that chassis must be checked against the Serial Numbers section of this Field Notice. The physical location of the chassis serial number is shown in this image:

Note: The physical serial number is found on the left inner panel in front of Power Supply Slot 1, as illustrated by the red circle in this image:

Note: Software Location

Note: The chassis serial number can also be located with the help of the software command line interface (CLI). The commands used to locate the serial number with both Cisco IOS? Software and CatOS Software CLI are as follows:

If a chassis serial number is found to be within the suspect range detailed in the Serial Numbers section of this document, submit an RMA request so that you are sent a replacement chassis, which is not susceptible to this failure. After your replacement chassis is received, remove the defective chassis from production and send that chassis back to Cisco.

For More Information

If you require further assistance, or if you have any further questions regarding this field notice, please contact the Cisco Systems Technical Assistance Center (TAC) by one of the following methods: